My Learners, My Teachers

It's been a while since I opened my friendster account as I have been recently hooked up to facebook wherein communicating with my colleagues and keeping updates of them is faster and easier. My friendster has almost become a forgotten social network account when I decided to open it to explore my friends' latest updates. Looking at my network activity, I found my student who was under my advisory class back in the Philippines who just added his classmate during sophomore years.

Curious of their latest happenings as they have been part of my life as a teacher, I browsed the pictures in their album. And then, my eyes started to gloom as I saw them capturing life's memorable moments including their high school years. The faces I saw were the very students I left and cried for when I decided to leave for a teaching opportunity in Thailand. They were the very students I have exchanged with what I called 'greener pasture'. They have been a part of my life and looking at them taking bolder steps towards their dreams gave me a sense of happiness and a piece of regret for not being with them for the rest of the sophomore years.

I could still remember the first time I met those innocent faces in the classroom. Their frowns every time I release them late for a Mathematics enrichment class still leave a picture in my mind. Their complaints every time I ask them to speak English whenever they talk to me is nothing but memorable. We all had our moments shared inside the classroom as we learned and prepared for our future together.

Now, they're grown-up college students and they will soon have their own part in our community. I am happy for I was once a part of their lives and they also became a part of my existence. As always, I would express my heartfelt gratitude to my students for helping me realize the real meaning of my existence. I would not become a fulfilled teacher as I am without my students for every encounter that I had with them was both a learning experience and a moment of awakening. As a teacher, leaving my students in the Philippines for a teaching job abroad is like leaving my very own children. As I watched their pictures, I have seen that they're much better now than they were before.

Being a teacher, I have to be honest that I got most of my insights in life from the realizations brought by my students to me. Each day, I consider every learner not as empty tablets who impassively enter the classroom for they usually come with rich experiences, thoughts and feelings which need to be heard, appreciated, and learned from. They are more than just learners; they are teachers as well for oftentimes, as teachers, we get the best lesson in teaching from our learners.

Seminar for High School Mathematics Teachers

The Center for Human Research and Development Foundation, Inc. will be conducting a one-day national seminar-workshop on "Making High School Mathematics Real and Relevant" at the Institute of Social Order (ISO), Ateneo de Manila University, Loyola Heights, Quezon City come October 24, 2009.

The seminar would run for the whole day (from 7:00 AM to 4:30 PM) with Mr. Ricardo M. Crisostomo, a renowned author of different books and articles in Science and Mathematics and has been in the academe for 25 years, as resource speaker. As I glanced at the seminar's program, the topics include the following:
1. Mathematics: Reality and Relevance
2. How Students Learn Mathematics
3. The Joy and Art of Teaching Mathematics
4. Developing Real Relevant Teaching Frameworks

For this, I am planning to rebook my return ticket to Bangkok from October 23 to October 24 so I could join this seminar which is geared towards equipping high school Mathematics teachers with progressive knowledge on the teaching and learning of Mathematics. Aside from the reunion with my loved ones, my attendance to this seminar would surely add meaning to my three-week vacation in the Philippines. At least, I will be back with my teaching track in Bangkok with renewed interest and enthusiasm in teaching Mathematics to my Second Year and Fifth Year high school students.

For more information, download the details HERE.

Lea Salonga in Bangkok

Bangkok Symphony Orchestra Foundation in cooperation with the Embassy of the Republic of the Philippines in Bangkok, Thailand present the world-renowned Filipino singing sensation Ms. Lea Salonga come September 12, 2009 at Queen Sirikit Convention Center, Bangkok. After her very successful Cinderella musical at Esplanade, Bangkok, Lea would be back for another moment of goose bumps and boisterous applause.

Leah would be performing with the Bangkok Symphony Orchestra wherein her brother, Gerard Salonga would be the conductor. it would be a night of the magic of Disney and Broadway musicals featuring the impressive songs from The Lion King, Aladdin, Beauty and The Beast, The Little Mermaid, Mulan, West Side Story, Guys and Dolls, A Chorus Line, Oliver, Miss Saigon and Les Misérables.

Tickets are available at 500, 1000, 1500, 2000, 2500 and 3,000 at ThaiTicketmajor. They are giving discounts to early birds (those who bought ticket before August 21). However, if you failed to buy ticket before August 21, I heard that you could also buy tickets at discounted price at the Philippine Embassy through Mr. Randy Arquiza. Just try to give them a call for you might still be able to catch Lea's another amazing live performance here in Bangkok.

Click HERE for more information about the event.

On Philippine Blog Awards and My Teaching Blog

CONFIRMATION

I just received an e-mail from the organizers of Philippine Blog Awards 2009 confirming that my blog has been reviewed already and it's now an official nominee to the Philippine Blog Awards 2009 under Personal Blogs category. If my blog would be chosen as one of the lucky winners this year, my excitement to go home this coming October would be added for sure.

I know there are lots of good personal blogs in the list of nominees but I am still hopeful that I would win. Should I start preparing my speech for the awarding night? hahaha!

MERGING WITS AND SPIRITS AND MEANINGFUL EDUCATION

I am afraid that I would not have enough time to update my blogs these days so I am planning that instead of separating my personal and teaching blogs, I would just merge them. For that, starting next week or any time this week, I would be lifting the articles that have been posted at my teaching blog and post them here.

Since this blog, Wits and Spirits, is more general and easier to update as I have been posting random thoughts here, I decided that I would keep this blog and would just add a section dedicated to teaching. If you have been following my blog, you might find the sidebars different in the following days because I would be adding other widgets to be lifted from my teaching blog.

The only problem that I foresee right now is my blog lay out. Any suggestion about easy blog layout customization?

Why We Need Leaders?

History itself has proven that leadership is inseparable to mankind. Since the inception of society before the dawn of civilization, leaders have been existing.

Needless to say, we are living in a very unique society where individuality is the only thing common among every people. People tend to have different attitudes, traits and characteristics due to the upbringing of the community where they live. Diversity is found in every level and every corner of the world that even the smallest of the smallest society enjoy it. Different we might be, we cannot deny the fact that this world is meant to be a world of happiness where everyone enjoys while in harmony with each other. Whether we are in Asia, Europe, South America, North America, Africa, or Australia; we are one and we should work as one. In order to do this, we need leaders who possess strong leadership attitude to guide and inspire every people in the society.

Leadership is needed in every corner of the world. Leaders are important in every organization. A world without leaders is like a ship without lighthouse. It would work yet it would be undirected and possibilities of naval accidents would be very high. In a society, a leader is equally important to the lighthouse of navigating ships. Without a leader, fight against each one’s principles and philosophies would be more rampant and misunderstanding would be more prevalent. A sound leader is needed to create a sound society and the good thing is we can all be leaders. We can all be leaders of ourselves by possessing strong leadership attitude. We can all be leaders by leading our inner self and leading others by example. We can all be leaders by taking initiative every time needed, by being proactive to every situation, by taking part in the solution and not the problem, and by taking responsibility in our actions. Everybody is meant to be leaders. Leadership is very necessary. If the jungle animals have their lion king and the colony of ants have their king and queen; how about, we, people?